Disability insurances are extremely vital for those pursuing a career in the medical field. However, looking for the right insurance company to entrust your future to can be overwhelming, even confusing. Here we have listed the 5 best disability insurance for doctors for you to take your pick.
But before we get to that, there are four things you should keep an eye on when you choose your disability insurance provider:
- The sum of financial aid you will receive;
- For how long the financial aid will persist;
- The elimination/waiting period (the time between the day you fulfill the requirements to be considered disabled and the day you start receiving your financial aid); and
- The definition of disability (the perimeters you must fulfill in order to be acknowledged as disabled).
The last is arguably the most crucial factor to take into consideration. Generally speaking, insurance companies define disabilities into two categories; own-occupation disability and any-occupation disability.
Own-occupation disability means that you have lost the skill set to continue in your field of specialty, but are able-bodied enough to change careers. Meanwhile, any-occupation disability means that the extent of your disability is such that you can no longer work.
The medical field is so specialized that the ability to execute specific tasks may decide between a life of comfort and a life of struggle. As such, for doctors, the true own-occupation policy is an absolute criterion.
We choose to cover these “Big 5” companies on the basis that they have true own-occupation policies. We have summarized each company’s specialty as follows.
Massachusetts Mutual (MassMutual)
MassMutual has two disability insurance plans; Radius and Radius Choice. Radius covers the fundamentals, while Radius Choice gives you the thumbs up to add extra agreements to suit your specific needs.
Common riders include Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA), Future Increase Option (FIO), and an extended partial disability benefit.
It has the longest minimal waiting period of 60 days among the companies listed here. Longer waiting duration means cheaper monthly fees. However, you should take your personal financial situation into consideration before deciding upon the duration.
MassMutual also bestows you some set advantages, such as
- Premium waiver – once you claim disability, you don’t need to pay the monthly fee until you no longer need financial aid (e.g. when you heal).
- Recurring disability – You can collect your financial aid immediately if you experience a repeated health problem.
- Presumed total disability – Should you get irreversible injuries (such as losing limbs, sight, etc.) you will receive your aid immediately.
Ameritas
Similar to MassMutual, Ameritas also provides two disability insurance plans; DInamic Foundation (DI standing for Disability Insurance) and DInamic Fundamentals. The former is equivalent to Radius Choice, and the latter is equivalent to Radius.
The shortest elimination time available is 30 days and the longest is 730 days. However, for every year you spend without claiming disability, Ameritas will reduce your waiting time by 2 days until it reaches the minimum limit.
Other guaranteed merits include:
- Non-disabling injury benefits – If you are still capable of partly executing your field of expertise, Ameritas will cover a portion of the treatment fees.
- Presumptive total disability benefit
- Surgical transplant benefit – should you have health problems as a result of donating your organs, Ameritas will terminate your waiting period.
Guardian
Unlike the two previous ones, Guardian operates with different sets of insurance policies. They divide them into short-term and long-term. Their short-term policies are only meant for groups, while long-term policies are available for groups and individuals alike.
Guardian’s group insurance plans are especially useful if you are an employer looking to supply proper disability insurance for your employees. You can tailor the insurance plans to your preferences with an elimination time between 30 to 720 days.
Some of Guardian’s subsidiary add-ins are:
- Catastrophic disability rider – Guardian will provide you with extra aid if your condition severely impacts your ability to perform simple daily tasks.
- FIO
- COLA
- Student loan protection – Guardian will add extra benefits to help you pay off your student debts.
Principal
Principal’s true own-occupation policy exists with another name, and that is ‘regular occupation rider’. The principal has the shortest maximum waiting period among the listed companies with only 365 days. In addition, these policies will continue to support you until your olden, retiree days.
Some of Principal’s guaranteed interests are:
- Rehabilitation benefit – Principal will provide you with subsidiary fees to help you regain your health.
- Waiver of premium benefit – you no longer need to pay your monthly sum after 90 days post disability.
- Death benefit – if you pass away while your disability claim is in place, your family will receive compensation.
Meanwhile, some of Principal’s rider advantages are as listed:
- Catastrophic disability rider
- Presumptive disability benefit rider
- COLA
- Short-term residual disability benefit rider (STRDB) – can be applied if your earnings are reduced by 20% due to your temporary or residual injury/illness.
- Supplemental health benefit rider – you will receive subsidiary fees should you be diagnosed with certain health issues.
The Standard
The Standard provides its true own-occupation policy through its Platinum Advantage disability insurance plan. Like Guardian, They also provide insurance policies for business owners.
Their elimination period ranges between 30 to 360 days, and the guarantee is renewable. If you sign up for a rider, the guarantee will also be non-cancelable.
The Standard allows you several inherent benefits, such as:
- Automatic increase benefit – The Standard will give you an automatic 4% increase of benefit within the first 5 years.
- Business owner discounts – there will be a reduction of fees if you are a business owner with employees.
- Family care benefit – there will be additional benefits if you lose 20% of your earnings while supporting an ailing family member.
- Presumptive total disability benefit
- Rehabilitation benefit
- Premium waiver benefit
They also have additional merits, namely:
- Basic, enhanced, or short-term residual – coverage for after-effects of your disabilities should they cause a loss of earnings.
- Catastrophic disability benefit
- Student loan benefit
- COLA
With that, we conclude our overview of the 5 best disability insurance for doctors. Are you interested in applying to one of them?
Sources:
https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-disability-insurance/
https://www.policygenius.com/disability-insurance/best-disability-insurance-companies/doctors/
https://www.guardianlife.com/disability-insurance/physicians
https://physiciansthrive.com/disability-insurance/disability-insurance-companies/
https://physiciansthrive.com/disability-insurance/mass-mutual-review/
https://physiciansthrive.com/disability-insurance/ameritas-review/
https://physiciansthrive.com/disability-insurance/guardian-disability-insurance-review/
https://www.patternlife.com/guide-to-principal
https://www.policygenius.com/disability-insurance/reviews/the-standard/